Lake Chehaw Fishing Recreation - Formerly known as Lake Worth, it is a 1,400-acre impoundment of the Flint River and Muckalee and Kinchafoonee creeks, located near Albany. Owned-operated by Georgia Power Co, 3 boat ramps provide public access to the reservoir.

General Information

Angling prospects are compiled by fisheries biologists and are based on sampling efforts of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR), knowledge of past fishing trends, angling experience and information provided by anglers and marina owners. For more information contact the Wildlife Resources Division, Albany Fisheries office: ph. 229-430-4256.

Lake Worth Recreation Area - Located on the west side of the Flint River Dam in Albany, Georgia is the Lake Worth Recreation Area. Due to its location in a heavily populated area, Georgia Power has recently made significant improvements to the park. Facilities include a large picnic pavilion and several picnic areas, a boat ramp, restrooms, ample parking, and two fishing piers. One of the fishing piers is located on the Muckafoonee Creek and the other is below the Flint River dam on the tailrace.

Boat Ramps

Info on Georgia Power-operated boat ramps can be found using the contact information below.

Target - Look to the fast-water shoal areas of the Flint River for these hard-fighting fish. Also look to the tailrace below the dam as shoal bass, among other species, congregate there at various times throughout the year and are usually present during the spring months.

Technique - Use live bait (bluegill or shad) for flatheads. For channel cats, use a variety of baits, such as large worms, chicken livers and shad or mullet guts.

Target flatheads along old creek and river channel drop-offs and near deeper holes in the Flint River arm and the two creek arms. Fish shallow water coves and flats near deeper water during the spring and fall for channel cats. Channel catfish can be located throughout the summer in deeper holes in the river channels up the two creek arms and the Flint River arm. Also, channel cats congregate in the tailrace below the dam at different times throughout the year.

Target areas around creek mouths and around any visible cover, such as old stumps or fallen trees. Many submerged stumps and much standing timber is located in the main reservoir basin.

Bream fishing on Chehaw includes bluegill and redear sunfish. Bluegill will be relatively small, averaging 5-7 inches, and the average redear will be 6-8 inches.

Technique - Red wigglers usually work best for redear sunfish and crickets generally for bluegill, although both baits can catch either fish. Some anglers fish with small jigs worked slowly under bobbers.

Target - Shallow flats and sloughs adjacent to deeper water are often productive bream spots. The slough just upstream of Cleve Cox boat ramp (located at the Highway 91 crossing) and the sloughs above and below the confluence of the Kinchafoonee and Muckalee Creeks can be productive, though bream are found throughout the reservoir. Redear fishing usually is best from late April through June, and bluegill fishing is usually best from June through September.

Hybrid and Stripe Bass - In addition to flathead catfish, stripers provide the best chance at a trophy catch. Anglers annually catch striped bass at 20-plus pounds. Most fishing success occurs during the spring and in Blackshear and Lake Chehaw tailraces. Although not stocked with hybrids or known for good hybrid fishing, enough fish escape from upstream Lake Blackshear to provide opportunities for the occasional 2-3 pound hybrid in Chehaw.

Technique - For spring fishing in the tailraces, live bait (primarily shad), bucktails, and large crankbaits and topwater lures work well. The trick is being there when the fish are there and feeding. Striped bass or hybrid striped bass can be difficult to target in the summer, but expected to find them mostly in the lower end of the Flint River arm, between the main dam and Cromartie Beach.

Target - Fish Albany and Blackshear tailraces from late March through May for the occasional striped bass or hybrid striped bass.

Additional Info

Lake Chehaw has many shallow areas, making it vulnerable to aquatic nuisance species. Managers are particularly concerned with hydrilla, an exotic plant that has infested Lake Seminole and has the ability to rapidly spread throughout a reservoir such as Lake Chehaw. Anglers can help prevent the spread of hydrilla by inspecting their tackle, boat motor, and trailer and removing all plant fragments before entering or leaving boat ramps. More information regarding hydrilla and other aquatic nuisance species in Georgia.

Additionally, managers are concerned about the potential introduction of spotted bass into Chehaw. The invasive spotted bass may directly compete with the native shoal bass and largemouth bass, and anglers are advised not to release spotted bass into the system and report any spotted bass sightings to the Albany Fisheries office at 229-430-4256.
Tips on how to identify spotted bass from largemouth bass.